


The apocalypse was cancelled

by Laura_Sinele



Series: Fictober 2019 drabbles [20]
Category: Pacific Rim (Movies)
Genre: Boys In Love, Boys Kissing, Drift Side Effects, Enemies to Lovers, Fluff, Friends to Enemies, Internalized Homophobia, Light Angst, Love Confessions, Multi, Post-Canon, Post-Drift (Pacific Rim), Science Boyfriends, Science Husbands, Worried Hermann Gottlieb
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-30
Updated: 2019-10-30
Packaged: 2021-01-13 08:30:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 794
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21241184
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Laura_Sinele/pseuds/Laura_Sinele
Summary: Hermann drifted with Newton and a dying kaiju brain in order to save the world. As a result, his own private world is about to fall apart or so he thinks.





	The apocalypse was cancelled

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Fictober19 prompt 22: "We could have a chance"
> 
> It's silly fluffy, but I think they deserved this more than You Know What Sequel I Am Pointing At.

People kept pouring through the entrances into the mess hall. Champagne bottles kept coming out of nowhere. Technicians and military staff mingled and danced and cheered for the cancellation of the apocalypse. 

After a while shaking hands, giving and taking congratulations, Hermann Gottlieb's bad leg started to show the signs of all the running around during the previous hours and the built up tension in the face of the end of the world. He found a chair in a quiet corner and claimed it for himself. 

Newton Geiszler had been engulfed by the crowd a moment after their grand arrival, and Hermann was both miserable and glad about it. The three-way drifting and the surge of euphoria after obtaining the final piece of vital information, delivering it on time and witnessing the rangers succeed, had revealed, or rather highlighted, a series of facts about Newton and himself that he'd prefer to bury again. The distance between them, and the current celebrations helped in that particular endeavour. But the aftereffects of such a powerful drift made it physically painful to be apart of his drift compatible, real world incompatible, lab partner. 

Hermann closed his eyes and let a long breath out through his nose while he rested his head against the cold steel wall. Right when all his joints and bones aligned and popped pleasantly and his muscles settled into a comfortable position, he heard a chair being dragged and an agitated presence sit by his side. He didn't need to open his eyes to know without a doubt that it was Newton. Even before drifting, he could easily recognize his smell, the sound of his breathing, the heat radiating from his body. Hermann did nothing. Newton leant slightly on him and said, as if quoting —actually quoting:

"We could have a chance"

Hermann took a deep breath and replied with half-hearted grumpiness:

"What on earth are you talking about, Dr. Geiszler?" 

Any other time, Newton would have snapped at that. He would have pointed to Hermann's deflection, would have called bullshit on his feigned ignorance and would have brought up old quarrels or insulted him. He just smirked instead, knowing that today this was a reluctant yet playful invitation to expand on his theory. 

"Right before we met. You were thinking we could have a chance. You thought we'd be pointed at enough because we were too young for our academical records and too socially awkward, and adding queerness to the mix was a mistake but still, you thought 'we could have a chance'". 

Hermann was looking at his own entwined fingers on his lap. He had hoped Newton hadn't noticed that memory or that the Precursors influx had erased it. He remained silent, and Newton resumed his speech:

"What made you change your mind?", there was no sourness in that question. It was almost whispered amidst the party roaring. "Did you see my memories of that day?" 

Hermann nodded:

"You saw me, your heart was beating fast and you thought you were having a stroke. Then, when I left it was just noise, pain, words that made no sense" 

"I was trying to remember your last letter. But I was too shocked". He stopped looking at Hermann to glance at the Shatterdome staff celebrating. Then he looked at Hermann again and he found him looking back. "Why did you change your mind?" 

"You were too loud. Too excited, too open, too unapologetic. You almost kissed me upon meeting, Newton. I was closeted even for myself. I still am for the others. I was terrified I was going to ruin everything and I didn't even know for sure that you felt the same". 

"I feel the same", cut Newton. "Still. Despite you being a total ass for years. And I almost kissed you when you said you were drifting with me". 

Hermann took Newton's face in his hands and joined their foreheads. 

"I almost died when I found you unconscious. I told you not to drift with a god damned kaiju brain, you—“

Newton met Hermann's lips and Hermann let him, not letting go off his face. Newton grabbed Hermann's sweater in one hand and hanged the other off Hermann's nape. They traded close mouthed, intense kisses, each stronger and longer than the previous one, until an uproar caught their attention. Raleigh and Mako had just entered the mess and the cheers and whoops and claps were louder than ever. 

Newton and Hermann saw them waving, holding hands, faces streaked with tears of joy and grief. They chuckled at the sight and held onto each other, watching the rangers about to give a speech. Newton nuzzled his nose against Hermann's neck. Hermann kissed his forehead. Miss Mori was speaking and the world was saved.


End file.
